How can a career changer get the research experience needed to be a strong candidate for a Psychology PhD program?
Volunteer as a researcher in clinical or academic settings for at least 2 semesters and make sure you have some tangible research product like an abstract, paper or something to present when you're applying to increase your chances. The easiest step are to take 2 or 3 psych classes at a local university first. That'll open doors to research opportunities as these institutions don't normally take anyone random to do research with. But you will have student access to these opportunities.
If I have no psychology "experience", how hard is it to enter a top 20 PhD program?
Two points:1) If you have no experience in any field that would be go under the "psychology" label: this is not insurmountable, as a number of fields share enough in common with "psychology" to furnish relevant and valuable experience, e.g. teaching/education, professional caretaking (of infants, elderly, in medical settings, for example), and many others. If this is the case, it'll be a matter of finding the element in your experience that allows you to "pivot" over to psychology, which element would usually have something to do with an interest and understanding of how people experience and behave in the world.2) If you have no experience in doing research of any sort: this is a much harder hurdle to clear for applying to Ph.D. programs, which are of course primarily meant to train you to go into research. The concern will be whether you have the prerequisite academic skills, personal disposition, and basic familiarity with the culture (of academia and academic publishing) to succeed in the program; this is also somewhat high-stakes for the institution, as most Ph.D. programs are funded (partially, if not fully) for at least the first couple of years. It's a gamble for the institution, so they want to make sure the odds favor success. If you lack this experience, you might need to try and find a lab research job to build up that experience, or apply to a Master's program in psychology, which programs are generally far more accepting (literally!) of applicants from non-psych backgrounds. It is possible that you have other experience which could be meaningfully considered evidence of your fit for a Ph.D. program, but it is a bit harder to get outside of research settings (e.g., the graduate student advisor on my senior thesis had switched from physics to psychology prior to pursuing his Ph.D., but he did at least have some research experience via his undergraduate physics background).What to do will differ a lot depending on where you are now: are you an undergrad nearing the completion of your bachelors? Did you finish a master's level degree in some other field, and wish to transition? Are you making a mid-life career jump from a different field? And so on. It would be helpful to know your specific background and aims (e.g. what kind of psychology? Clinical, or social, or industrial, or neurocognitive?)
Can I get into a Psych Graduate Program?
I graduated with college with Honor's with a Bachelor's of Science in Psychology. I also got a 760 on my GRE General test. However, I have no research experience whatsoever and I'm not sure about how exactly to going about getting letters of recommendation. Do I have a chance at getting into a graduate program or should I try and get some experience first?
What is a clinical psychology PhD like? Is most of it about research or practical experience?
A clinical Ph.D. is balanced with both aspects— it is a very versatile degree. A counseling Ph.D. or a Psy.D. are typically less research focused. I had friends in a PsyD program while I was getting my Ph.D. At least in those few cases that I knew personally, their emphasis on research was much less. The demands for the sophistication and extent of their research was also much less. For example, a friend’s dissertation was less than 100 pages, and he did all his research based on one internet questionnaire. In contrast, my dissertation was 200 pages and I had to run 249 subjects through a very extensive battery and interview process. The competition for the PhD program was also VERY HIGH— there were only seven people in our class and hundreds of applications. If you love research and you might want to be a professor with a research and publication focus, the clinical PhD is a great option. If you are more hands-on therapy focused, a counseling doctorate or PsyD might be better. Again, these are just personal observations. I am not an expert on other training programs.
Is it still possible to get into a clinical psychology PhD program with low GRE scores?
Context:I got a 145/Verbal and 144/Quant.3.26 undergrad GPA from a good school (B.S. Psychology)3.97 GPA in my Masters Counseling Psychology program (M.A.)Relevant clinical experienceResearch experienceMultiple presentations at national psychological conferencesTA for a graduate level courseOther facts: I'm 33 years old and am a military veteranClinical Psychology PhD programs I am applying to: University of Colorado (Colorado Springs), University of Montana, University of South Dakota, University of Wyoming, Louisiana Tech, University of South Alabama, Virginia Tech, and University of HoustonMy research interests match the professors that I plan to apply to at each of these schoolsI have 4 professors writing strong letters of recommendation on my behalfI believe my Statement of Purpose to be very strongAny info would be greatly appreciated!
Im going to a cuny school to get an associates degree for liberal arts(psychology)?
It does not really matter if you have a BA or a BS in psychology as long as you have obtained the necessary amount of research experience which is necessary to gain admission to PhD programs in clinical psychology. If you are open to considering PsyD programs in clinical psychology, as well as PhD programs, then the difference between whether you have a BA or a BS is particularly negligible. As you may know, one of the primary differences between PhD and PsyD programs in clinical psychology is their focus on psychological research. Do you know if you are interested in working in a research capacity or if you are interested in working in a clinical setting with patients? If you are interested in both research and clinical practice, the PhD program is the best option. Many applicants to PhD programs in clinical psychology have completed extensive research experience in a psych lab at their college/university and have also complete 2-3 years of research between college and graduate school. After you complete your 4-year undergraduate degree and begin a PhD program in clinical psychology, the educational portion of the program can take anywhere from 5-7 years to complete and must then be followed by a year-long clinical supervised internship as well as a passing score on a state licensing exam. Once all these steps are complete, those with a PhD in clinical psychology are then able to work directly with patients in an unsupervised capacity. If you know for sure that you do not want to do research but only want to engage in clinical practice, a PsyD program may be a better bet. The PsyD program is typically shorted than the PhD program and does not usually involve an empirically based dissertation. However, many PsyD programs are tuition based so, unlike PhD programs which often cover the expenses incurred by their students, PsyD students often need to pay out of pocket for the cost of their education. Good luck!